Authoritarian rule involves the centralized control of power by a single individual or group. Such regimes tend to emerge when democratic institutions ossify and people lose faith in established parties and elites. People then seek out authoritarian alternatives that promise to directly and quickly solve their problems. These regimes also restrict political participation, and, in the case of some autocratic populists like Vladimir Putin, do away with term limits entirely.
Historically, authoritarians often justify their expansion of executive power with a cult of personality and by denigrating checks and balances as corrupt obstacles to the popular will. They also often sow divisions among different social groups to undermine their opponents’ support and rally their own base.
In more modern times, authoritarians often use democratic institutions to maintain their legitimacy, but these practices are usually just a facade. For example, they may allow some opposition in legislatures or a limited level of independence in the judiciary. They may even hold elections, but the playing field is not level. They typically rig the electoral system and stack governing bodies with loyal lackeys. They also “coup-proof” the military, making it an ineffective check on executive power.
Psychological studies have also explored what drives individuals to support authoritarian forms of government. In the 1950s, Theodor Adorno published a book called The Authoritarian Personality, which argued that certain personality traits make some people more amenable to authoritarian rule, including a general willingness to submit to authority and a rigid cognitive style.